A confrontation clause violation has led a federal judge to throw out the conviction of a Staten Island man for assaulting a child more than nine years ago.

Michael Duhs was convicted for the 2005 bathtub scalding of the 3-year-old child of his live-in companion, in part because a doctor who questioned the child repeatedly about what had happened was told by the child “he wouldn't let me out.”

The child did not testify at Duhs' trial in Richmond County Supreme Court, but the doctor was allowed to testify as to the statement—a crucial piece of evidence that led to Duhs being convicted of the felony first-degree assault and a misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a child.